''Queen of the Rushes'' is a 1906 novel by the Welsh writer

Allen Raine Allen Raine was the pseudonym of the Welsh novelist Anne Adalisa Beynon Puddicombe (6 October 1836 – 21 June 1908), who was born in Newcastle Emlyn. Her novels had sold more than two million copies by 1912. Life She was born Anne Adalisa Evan ...

, written in the English language and first published by

Hutchinson & Co Hutchinson was a British publishing firm which operated from 1887 until 1985, when it underwent several mergers. It is currently an imprint which is ultimately owned by Bertelsmann, the German publishing conglomerate. History Hutchinson began ...

. It was the eighth of Allen Raine's novels, and is considered by many to be her best. It is set against the events of the recent 1904–1905 Welsh revival, and is subtitled ''A Tale of the Welsh Revival''. Evan Roberts, the leader of the revival, appears as a character in the book.

Plot

The book begins with the sinking of a small vessel, resulting in the deaths of several agricultural labourers. The incident orphans two of the main characters: Gwenifer, who is struck dumb by the sight of seeing her mother drown, and Gildas, who inherits his father's farm. Gwenifer becomes devoted to Gildas, but he instead marries the vivacious Nance Ellis, granddaughter of one of his tenants; Nance becomes caught up in the revival, as does a sea captain, Jack Davies, with whom she falls in love, whilst Gwenifer and Gildas remain aloof from what they consider the excessive zeal of the local congregation.

References

1906 British novels Anglo-Welsh novels Hutchinson (publisher) books {{1900s-novel-stub